NASSCOM Foundation and Genpact announce the 5th edition of the NASSCOM Social Innovation Honours

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NASSCOM Foundation and Genpact announce the 5th edition of the NASSCOM Social Innovation Honours

NEW DELHI, 1 September 2012 - How are innovations in ICT being used to achieve social good? How can these innovations be brought to scale? To help answer these fundamental questions, NASSCOM Foundation and Genpact are proud to announce the NASSCOM Social Innovation Honours.

These awards are designed to recognize ideas and innovations that use technology to foster a positive change in the socio-economic landscape of India. Entries for the national competition are now open, and the winners will be honoured at the NASSCOM India Leadership Forum early next year.

Since 2008, the Honours have attracted more than 1,000 innovative projects from NGOs, corporates, social enterprises, government bodies, PSUs, students and individuals.

Access to clean drinking water for several hundred thousand, saving hundreds of baby girls, giving access to financial services, empowering women and children alike, and bridging market gaps for farmers are some of NASSCOM’s Innovation award winning projects.

“The NASSCOM Social Innovation Honours redefines the use of IT. In a wide variety of ways, technology is being used to improve the lives of Indians and bring sustainability to our planet. What is special about this award is that everyone is encouraged to participate, be you a government agency, an NGO, or a large corporate.

As the famous American Maragret Mead said, 'Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.' In partnership with Genpact, we believe it is this potential which will bring true change to our India,” said Rita Soni, CEO, NASSCOM Foundation.

Genpact has been associated with these honours from the beginning. “We are delighted to be associated with an award that honours the exemplary work done by entrepreneurs in improving the social landscape of the nation,” said Tiger Tyagarajan, President & CEO Genpact.

“At Genpact, we recognize the power of combining process innovation and information technology to deliver scale. This platform exemplifies our business philosophy, for a cause, and we look forward to it every year.”

This year, NASSCOM Foundation has introduced a Special Recognition Award: ‘Innovation for Children’ in partnership with UNICEF. This award will honour innovations that impact children to help them thrive and develop to their full potential. UNICEF recognizes the critical role that technology can play in developing and achieving the Millennium Development Goals, especially in the context of the children of our country.

Through this special recognition, UNICEF would like to encourage companies to innovate and address this need.

Each year, participants showcase their exceptional use of ICT for social transformation to an eminent jury. This year, S. Ramadorai, Vice Chairman of TCS and Advisor to the Prime Minister, is leading the grand jury. Anand G. Mahindra, Chairman of Mahindra & Mahindra and Infosys Chairman Emeritus Narayan Murthy have been past chairmen of the jury.

The winners will present their innovations at the prestigious NASSCOM India Leadership Forum event in February 2013.

Deadline for Applications: September 30, 2012

Call for Entries:

If you are bringing change for a particular community, region, state, or the country, this is the platform to share your idea. Applications are invited from ICT led social innovation projects in the following categories: